Common Threads

Artworks: Multi-media

18 artworks / 6 artists / 3 crates / 70 running feet

Available September 2008 to August 2009

Curated by Todd Schaber of the Prairie Art Gallery

The exhibition “Common Threads: Textiles in Art” presents artists that use textiles in the creative and formative process of their work. The line between Fine Art and Craft has always been a narrow one and today, artists from both genres are starting to deny that line in pursuit of the creative process. In the past the use of textiles was traditionally craft-based in nature, but this attitude is evolving into unique styles of fine art. As Melanie Jenner (one of the participating artists in this exhibition) states, “My intent is not to define the difference between fine art and craft, but simply to experiment with fabric as a medium.”

This exhibition introduces six visual artists who have either experimented with textiles in the past or have recently begun working with textiles. The art works vary in nature from the traditional quilts to the use of textiles as a catalyst for the recognition of alternate forms of fine art.

This exhibition includes work from invited Alberta artists Laura Vickerson (Calgary), Lorraine Thies and her son Logan (Calgary), Melanie Jenner (Grande Prairie), Doug Wills (Grande Prairie), Lena Gilje (Wembley), and Sabine Schneider (Sexsmith). All of these artists bring a unique sensibility to this exhibition.

Pink And Yellow Petals, 2007 by Melanie Jenner